- Romanian Armed Forces
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Romanian Armed Forces
Forţele Armate Române
The coat of armsFounded 1860 Current form 11 April 2000 Service branches Land Forces
Naval Forces
Air Forces
Headquarters Bucharest Leadership Supreme Commander of the Army Traian Băsescu Minister of National Defense Gabriel Oprea Chief of the General Staff Major General Ștefan Dănilă Manpower Military age 18 years of age Conscription No Available for
military service5,061,984 males, age 15–49 (2005 est.[2]),
4,975,427 females, age 15–49 (2005 est.[2])Fit for
military service3,932,579 males, age 15–49 (2005 est.[2]),
4,076,288 females, age 15–49 (2005 est.[2])Reaching military
age annually172,093 males (2005 est.[2]),
165,547 females (2005 est.[2])Active personnel 90,000 (ranked 47th) Reserve personnel 104,000 Deployed personnel 1,982 (total)[1] Afghanistan - 1,815
Expenditures Budget €1.13 billion.[3] Percent of GDP 0.81%.[3] Industry Domestic suppliers ROMARM
Romtehnica
Industria Aeronautică RomânăForeign suppliers Current:
United States
United Kingdom
Germany
Spain
Italy
Israel
Austria
Switzerland
South Africa
Former:
Soviet Union
Annual exports €141,000,000 (2009)[4] Related articles History Military history of Romania Ranks Romanian Armed Forces ranks and insignia The Land Forces, Air Force and Naval Forces of Romania are collectively known as the Romanian Armed Forces (Romanian: Forţele Armate Române or Armata Română) . The current Commander-in-chief is Major General Ștefan Dănilă, managed by the Minister of National Defense, while the president is the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces during wartime.
90,000 men and women currently comprise the Armed Forces, 75,000 of them being military personnel and the other 15,000 civilians. The Land Forces have a reported strength of 45,800, the Air Force 13,250 and the Naval Forces 6,800, while the remaining 8,800 serve in other fields.[5]
Contents
Budget
Total defence spending currently accounts for 2.05% of total national GDP, which represents approximately 2.9 billion dollars (ranked 47th).[6]
Equipment
The Land Forces have overhauled their equipment in recent years, and are today a modern army with multiple NATO capabilities. They are participating in a peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan, together with the other NATO countries. The Air Force currently operates modernized Soviet MiG-21 LanceR fighters, which are due to be replaced by new fighters by 2013, according to present plans, however due to poor funds and economy the plan may easily change. The Air Force has also ordered 7 new C-27J Spartan tactical airlift aircraft, in order to replace the bulk of the old transport force.[7] Two modernized ex-Royal Navy Type 22 frigates were acquired by the Naval Forces in 2004 and a further four modern missile corvettes will be commissioned in the next few years. Three domestically-produced IAR 330 Puma NAVAL helicopters were also ordered by the Naval Forces, and were commissioned in late 2008.
Manpower
Main article: Romania and NATORomanian soldiers on patrol in AfghanistanRomania joined NATO in 2004. As a consequence, extensive preparations were made to abolish conscription by 2007 and create a professional army in place of a conscripted one.
The new armed forces include 90,000 men and women, of whom about 75,000 are military personnel (the remaining 15,000 or so are civilians). 60,000 of the 90,000 are active forces; 30,000 comprise the territorial forces [8]. Out of the 75,000 troops which comprise the actual military, about 45,800 make up the Romanian Land Forces, 13,250 serve as the Romanian Air Force and 6,800 are in the Romanian Naval Forces; the remaining 8,800 serve in other fields [9].
Modernization
Romanian soldiers during trainingThe Romanian Military will essentially undergo a three-stage restructuring. As of 2007, the first short-term stage has been completed. 2015 marks the end of the second stage when the armed forces will reach a superior compatibility with NATO forces.[10]. In 2025, the long-term stage is to be completed. The stages aim at modernizing the structure of the armed forces, reducing the personnel as well as acquiring newer and more improved technology that is compatible with NATO standards[10].
Current deployments
Romanian soldiers in Southern Afghanistan during a joint operation with American forcesRomanian troops participated in the occupation of Iraq, reaching a peak of 730 soldiers before being slowly drawn down to 350 soldiers. Romania terminated its mission in Iraq and withdrew its last troops on July 24, 2009.
Romania currently has troops deployed in Afghanistan, and is planning to nearly double its troop strength there to 1,800 by September 2010, according to an announcement made by President Traian Basescu in Prague on April 8, 2010.[11]
Other militarized institutions
Soldiers of the 30th Honor Guard Regiment "Mihai Viteazul" during the 2007 Bastille Day Military Parade in ParisThe following Romanian institutions have military status but are not part of the Armed Forces:
- Romanian Gendarmerie (Jandarmeria Română), subordinated to the Ministry of Administration and Interior;
- Inspectoratul General al Corpului Pompierilor Militari (Military Firefighters) and Comandamentul Protecţiei Civile (Civil Defense), merged into the Romanian Inspectorate for Emergency Situations within the Ministry of the Interior;
- Serviciul Român de Informaţii (Romanian Intelligence Service);
- Serviciul de Protecţie şi Pază (Protection and Guard Service, provides protection to Romanian and foreign officials);
- Serviciul de Telecomunicaţii Speciale (Special Telecommunications Service);
- Serviciul de Informaţii Externe (Foreign Intelligence Service).
See also
- List of the Chiefs of the General Staff of Romania
- List of countries by number of active troops
- Foreign relations of Romania
- Weapons and equipment of the Romanian Armed Forces
Notes
- ^ Romanian General Staff Data, September 2011
- ^ CIA World Factbook, Military of Romania
- ^ a b (Romanian) [1]
- ^ http://stiri.rol.ro/Industria-de-armament-nu-se-preda-478645.html
- ^ (Romanian) Ministry of National Defense. Press conference
- ^ (Romanian)MoND Budget as of 2007, Ziarul Financiar, October 30, 2006
- ^ "Spartan Order", Aviation Week & Space Technology, December 11, 2006.
- ^ Ministry of National Defence, Press conference
- ^ Adevărul, România, cel mai important dintre viitorii membri ai NATO ("Romania, the most important among the future NATO members"), November 20, 2002
- ^ a b Ministry of National Defence, Strategia de transformare a Armatei României ("Strategy for the transformation of the Romanian Army")
- ^ YAHOO News, WHITE HOUSE NOTEBOOK: Obama in Prague
External links
- (English) Official site of the Romanian Ministry of Defense (MoD)
- (English) Official site of the Romanian General Staff
- (English) Official site of the Romanian Land Forces
- (English) Official site of the Romanian Air Force
- (English) Official site of the Romanian Naval Forces
- New U.S. Base in Romania To Be Larger Than Previously Estimated, ThePeacockReport.com, Oct. 11, 2006.
Categories:- Military of Romania
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